Poll

Today's Opinions

I would like to thank you for your editorial in the paper about our tea party and about us standing up for what we believe in and taking our rights to the streets and taking the time to meet instead of yelling at the TV while sitting in the comfort of our homes.

We have received many calls asking about Haiti. Our stateside director, Dave Zimmer, and a team left Jan. 19 to take much-needed food (beans and rice) and first aid. Pastor Ernst Cassy and the Children of Good Shepherd Orphanage are doing well. God protected them.

The U.S. Surgeon General has shown extensive evidence that exposure to secondhand smoke produces many severe health effects on one’s body, including immediate effects on the heart and blood vessels. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States and the Institute of Medicine found that secondhand smoke exposure increases the risk of heart disease by 25-30 percent. The Institute also notes consistent evidence that communities have fewer heart attacks after they go smoke-free.

I was so glad when I read that Mrs. McBurney got the renting of the senior center building stopped. The people who forced this action should be ashamed of themselves, making the public pay for their orneriness. Cleaning up your mess and putting your toys away used to be a rule most people followed.

We’ve all had times in our lives when we received shocking news. You know the kind I am talking about. Like the time you found out that were either being hired or fired. Or maybe when you discovered that you were getting a tax refund or perhaps the moment came when the doctor said the word “twins.”

All of these times brought about a different range of emotions. I would venture to say that when the news came down that you probably remember where you were and maybe even what the weather was.

Owen County may still be wrapped deep in winter but make no mistake, a new season is just around the corner – the political season.

Normally, the big national elections get all the good press. The national and statewide stages are where most of the good ideological fights take place. Because most of the social, philosophical and economic issues that get so many people excited are determined at the higher levels of government, sometimes the importance of local elections are overlooked and voter turnout is significantly lower than state and national elections.

Thank you for your article, “Perkins Pursues Research Dream,” in last week’s edition of the News Herald.

Thanks also to the Rotary Club for the opportunity to speak, and an advance thanks to the Owen County Chamber of Commerce.

Within hours of the Rotary Club presentation on Dec. 14, we received a review from a representative of the National Institute of Health that stated, “The approach used here could potentially revolutionize the methods used in drug development.”